Page 110

She's still here, and that's all that matters.

Chapter

Thirty-Four

Autumn

I wake up alone, and for half a second, disappointment hits before I'm even fully awake.

The room is quiet except for the ceiling fan turning lazily overhead. Sunlight slips through the curtains, bright enough that I know I've slept later than usual. The blankets are still tangled around my legs, one corner hanging off the edge of the mattress.

My mouth betrays me and smiles, which is a problem. Shouldn’t I feel guilt, regret, or even panic? Instead, I feel none of those things, and the lack of them is throwing me off.

I roll onto my back and drag both hands over my face before letting them fall beside me. This should feel more complicated than it does.

Shouldn't it?

The thought follows me all the way to the bathroom and then downstairs, where the smell of coffee hits before I even make it to the kitchen. My coffee is already made by the time I enter the room. Not just made, my mug is sitting beside my plate at the table, full and waiting for me, like somebody expected me to be here.

I stop halfway into the kitchen, and nobody even looks up.

"Morning, sunshine."

I narrow my eyes at Tripp as I drop into my chair.

"Don't start."

"I haven't even started yet."

"That's what worries me."

His grin widens.

The conversation keeps moving around me while I reach for my coffee. It’s only after my second sip that I realize I never asked for it.

Nobody asked how I take it, either, it's just right. The same way the jelly I like is already sitting on the table, the way Clint automatically slides the plate of bacon closer to me, the same way Briggs reaches over and steals my toast.

"Seriously?"

Without looking up from his phone, he takes a bite.

"You weren't moving fast enough."

"That's theft."

"Call the police."

I look at Clint. "See what I have to deal with?"

"You chose this life."

I stare at him, and he doesn't even try not to smile.

Traitor.

A few weeks ago, I would've thought all of this was weird. The coffee, the casual touching, the way somebody's always in my space.

Now?